


a smile to part the clouds

by BlackCats



Category: Dangan Ronpa
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pre-Canon, TW: Junko, Unhealthy Relationships, Verbal Abuse, giftfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-02
Updated: 2014-02-02
Packaged: 2018-01-10 22:07:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1165108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackCats/pseuds/BlackCats
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a perfect world, Mukuro thought, this walk home would have been the start of many more.<br/>(Mukuro, Naegi, and weathering storms.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	a smile to part the clouds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Divine Kali](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Divine+Kali).



The final bell for the day had already rung…maybe…oh, half an hour or so ago. Give or take a few minutes. Mukuro typically had flawless calculations regarding the exact flow of time but there was no reason at all for her to pay careful attention right now.

Junko, however, had cut school precisely an hour and forty-seven minutes previously. Yes, that was definitely something worth keeping tabs on. She sighed, finishing copying the last of her notes. Two of everything. Precise, perfect, legible…because Junko never kept her own. The one time Mukuro had simply photocopied them for her twin, Junko had pitched a fit about how she didn’t care enough to do anything for her by hand, and ever since….

If she didn’t stay after class and duplicate them in the absolute silence of the mostly-empty academy, then she’d have to try and do it as Junko ranted, raved, and complained about something or other to her at home.

That was more tiring than even  _she_ was willing to deal with.

_Besides,_ she thought as she put her pencil down and looked out the window. _A little alone time every now and then…isn’t a crime._ A stab of guilt hit her immediately after for thinking that, and she grimaced, quickly but neatly placing her books and papers back into her satchel. As she stood, she could see those involved in the sports teams doing their various activities down in the fields below. Sakura’s massive form was easily visible, and she recognized Asahina’s trademarked red jacket beside her. Looked like they were taking a water break, laughing together.

The sky, though, wasn’t reflecting the evident sunniness of their conversation.  It was clouding up quickly, with off-white and gray plumes obscuring the light from overhead, though shafts of gold still poked through every now and then.

Time to get home, indeed.

Mukuro cut off the light in the classroom and closed the door behind her, making her way down the corridors. She didn’t drop her gaze or look down when she passed other students because that was a submissive or nervous gesture, and she was anything but. She was just…disinterested, for the most part. Neutral.

Koizumi was talking with Fukawa about getting pictures for the artistic magazine they both helped to run. Apparently the idea was to match her short stories within. The two girls probably didn’t even know that Mukuro actually read it, and that she liked their combined creativity quite a lot.

To the shoe lockers she went. As she was in the process of switching footwear, however, she noticed the front doors sliding open as someone stepped through.

“Oh…Ikusaba-san! I wasn’t expecting to see you!”

Mukuro looked up and immediately felt the familiar warmth pooling in her stomach, but not a trace of red appeared on her face. “Naegi-kun,” she greeted, evenly.

Naegi waved cheerily and went to retrieve his satchel, which was on top of one of the lockers. He gave her an abashed look. “I got almost all the way home and realized I forgot it…”

She cracked a genuine smile. He was really quite the unbelievable fellow…in the best way. Like Junko’s antithesis. “How did you manage that?”

“I don’t know, to be honest…”

And then he laughed, and Mukuro nearly did as well. Nearly. She nodded and made to walk past him, but stopped before exiting as she noticed the way he was shifting his feet uneasily.

“Something wrong?” She asked without turning around.

“A-Ah, no! Sorry, Ikusaba-san…but I was just wondering…”

Silence on her end.

“Well, I’ve noticed you and Enoshima-san usually walk home together…and you always turn left at the crosswalks, so…”

“Yes, what about it?” Junko liked to live near the district with the most shopping for obvious reasons. Mukuro didn’t really care much either way. The regular old school dorms would have been all right with her. Both were excessively plush, more luxury than the soldier was used to regardless.

A deep breath was taken in as Naegi collected his composure. “I promised Komaru—my sister—I’d pick up something for her while I’m out! So I thought maybe we could…walk together for a while…?”

Mukuro slowly turned her head so that one eye was regarding him with a steely sort of deliberation. She nodded in a matter of moments.

_Alone time is overrated anyway._

Naegi perked right up and gave her this huge, delighted grin and Mukuro swiftly looked forward again so that she could hide the blush she could feel creeping up her cheeks. Her heart skipped as he stepped to her side, but by the time he peered up at her, she was already collected again.

“Thanks, Ikusaba-san! Sorry if I’m bothering you, I—“

“You’re not,” she interrupted, a rare thing for her since she had been trained not to cut off other people. Well, not like that anyway. “Really. You’re not, Naegi-kun. Let’s—“ Mukuro frowned at him suddenly.

Naegi looked perplexed, and a bit worried. “Are…Are you okay?”

She pointed. “You forgot your satchel again.”

“O-Oh! Right!” As he darted off to fetch it, she may or may not have chuckled ever so faintly.

The clouds had crept past the “overcast” state and were now projecting a dark shadow over the streets. Mukuro and Naegi walked side by side, past the Hope’s Peak security guards and the gate, down the road and out towards the crosswalks. The private property of the prestigious school ended there and the change in the atmosphere was almost palpable.

“Ikusaba-san, Enoshima-san went home already, didn’t she?”

“Yes.”

Naegi looked worried. “She went to the infirmary because she said she wasn’t feeling well…I hope she gets better soon.”

Poor, innocent guy. Junko could fake a cold just as easily as she could fake tears. Regardless…”I’ll pass on your well-wishes. Don’t worry though, I’m…sure she’s fine.”

He folded his arms behind his head and nodded, his satchel hanging from his wrist now. The pose said he was trying too hard to appear casual…and then, the way he was walking suddenly became apparent.

Like usual, being in his presence distracted her from even  _this_ : the simplest of observations. She was usually too busy thinking about other things. Like those hazel eyes…

Mukuro nearly smiled at how he had to keep picking up and slacking his steps in order to match her pace. He could’ve just said something.

She shortened her brisk strides and Naegi ran his hand through his hair, embarrassed that she had noticed.

“No wonder you’re so good at athletics, Ikusaba-san! Ahh…I’m not really that great, but you’re always really amazing to see.”

Typically Mukuro would have brushed it off as empty flattery, like the sort her sister spilled from her lips, but the brightness in his voice and in his eyes said he was as sincere as he could possibly be. She cleared her throat.

“It’s nothing special. With enough training, you could do the same.”

“ _Me_?” He almost laughed the word in sheer disbelief. “I….don’t think I have the talent.”

“You could do it,” she insisted, gray-blue eyes looking over at him. “Fitness…isn’t really  _my_  talent either, after all.”

_No…if anything…my special talent is killing._

And Mukuro felt absolutely nothing despite that thought crossing her mind, not even a twinge of Despair. A soldier was not expected to after all.

Naegi pondered her statement, brows drawing down as he placed his fingers on his chin. It was a deeply thoughtful gesture and came with an equally thoughtful expression—it was honestly a bit unexpected. It betrayed that the very docile boy at her side was most certainly smarter than one would expect.

Not that she had ever thought him a fool. Just…so hopelessly  _naïve_.

“Maybe you’ve got a point…If I start working out more, I can probably at least keep up with Kirigiri-san!” He flashed her another grin. “I don’t think I could ever match  _you_  though, Ikusaba-san.”

Mukuro was torn between being embarrassed and annoyed because she _knew_ how much Naegi hung out with the detective girl; the mere thought of her was enough to sometimes illicit the most jealous of feelings. Not that she _disliked_  her though. It was probably closer to the opposite.

Still, she was a little flattered that he found her so…impressive. Especially since she really thought nothing of it, herself.

“If you’d like,” she found herself saying. “I’ll help you put something together.”

“I couldn’t ask that of you…”

Mukuro shrugged. “You didn’t. I offered.”

Naegi was silent for a short while, and she took that time to gently nudge him to the left. He may have been only walking with her in order to pick “something” up, but she still had to get home to Junko. Deliberating for too long was risky for both of them…

“Oh! Um—“ Stirred from his musings, he finally responded with, “S-Sure, Ikusaba-san. I’d really appreciate it. But only if I can help you in return…?”

“How so?”

He apparently hadn’t been expecting her to immediately question it. She watched him trip over his tongue, pressing his fingertips together. “I-I could help with your coursework…? Or try to show you how to do something…else?”

Mukuro was internally smiling at his demeanor, but her exterior was expressionless as ever. She just arched dark eyebrows, waiting for him to elaborate.

“I-I’m not really sure…but I’ll definitely owe you one!”

Teasing him was amusing, she had to admit. “You really don’t. Though…maybe you’d rather ask Sakura-san or Asahina-san?” Or any of the other countless students involved in coaching and athletics.

Naegi shook his head. “No, Ikusaba-san, I’d be happy to do things your way.”

Mukuro had to turn her head again, pretending to glance at the shop windows they were passing, but even  _she_  could see the way her ears and cheeks had acquired a dusting of pink, thanks to her reflection.

He chuckled warmly and she thought it only got worse. “Ah, can we go in here?”

Her eyes snapped to where he was pointing, and she nodded, grateful for the cool, crisp air of the convenience store. It helped to calm her slightly frazzled thoughts. The glass doors slid apart with a rattle as the pair stepped through, and Naegi gave her an apologetic smile before going to snag what looked to be a few candy bars—and a magazine, surprisingly.

Mukuro brought a bottle of water to the cashier as well in an attempt to get the poor boy to stop appearing so self-conscious about everything, but to her shock, he took it from her and paid for it with everything else he was getting, returning it to her grasp a few moments later.

Naegi didn’t get a plastic bag. Instead he just stuck everything inside his satchel, but the cover of that magazine caught her eye, and Mukuro’s heart lurched uncomfortably.

“Naegi-kun,” she said, abrupt.

"Is something wrong?” His gaze followed hers and he looked so horrified that she instantly knew that the publication was not for him.

“Your sister…is into fashion?” She guessed, casual as she could.

“Not particularly actually, but she likes to read the articles Enoshima-san contributes to.”

Seeing Junko’s face on magazines was common, but somehow she felt reassured, knowing that Naegi wasn’t seeking her out himself. Guiltily, she could only hope his sister’s interest in Junko was harmless…but it never really was.

“Are you all right?”

And there it was again, that strange perceptiveness he had that almost didn’t seem like it would belong to someone like him. Mukuro’s mask dropped back into place and she nodded, taking a sip from her water bottle in order to distract herself.

When they stepped back outside, a gust of wind blew so hard that Mukuro had to hold her skirt down.

The clouds had swollen and were now an upset shade of deep gray, pulsating with lightning that roiled in their stomachs like neon lights. The breeze carried the sharp, clear scent of rain and thunder rumbled somewhere far off.

Naegi didn’t comment, but he beckoned for her to follow him, and they set off again at a faster trot than before. Only once they had turned a corner and put the grim sight at their backs did he speak. “We better get you home quick, Ikusaba-san! I wouldn’t want you to catch a cold too!”

He was an awfully chivalrous guy, wasn’t he? Mukuro didn’t often have genuine courtesy shown to her, and for a moment she had no idea how to even respond. “What about you?” She asked at length.

“I’ll be all right!” He smiled up at her again. “I’ve been caught in worse weather than this befor—“

A whispering could be heard from behind, and Mukuro didn’t even blink as the rain came down around them. It wasn’t  _too_  intense at the present but that could change at any moment, she knew. The soldier belatedly wondered if they could have bought an umbrella at that store a block back, but whatever. The rain never bothered her anyway. Not when she didn’t need to make a shot at least.

A sound akin to a low buzz came from her side, and Mukuro looked over at Naegi, who had made to unzip his jacket—but it had gotten stuck. He muttered something under his breath that was probably the closest he would ever get to swearing.

“…What are you doing?” She asked, lifting dark bangs from her eyes. The rain was beginning to make her hair stick to her skin.

He jumped a bit, startled. “W-Well I thought we could use my jacket to help keep the rain off of us…” Naegi looked to the side, and she smiled, noticing that his ears turned red when he blushed too…

Mukuro reached over, but hesitated, fingers hovering just over his. Did she… _should_ she…? She took hold of his zipper and refused to meet his gaze, jerking it down and allowing his jacket to hang open. “One problem with that,” she reminded, taking her hand back and trying to look as calm as she could. “I’m taller than you.”

Not missing a beat, he just placed the jacket into her arms, still grinning despite the fact that his already messy hair was falling flat along his head. That cowlick of his was still standing halfway-straight, defiant against the damp, though.

“Then you use it, Ikusaba-san,” he said, lifting his voice to be heard over the increasing din.

She took it with an unusual amount of gentleness, shocked, touched, a little flummoxed…but the kindness behind the gesture was what really struck her. Mukuro pulled it over her head and found that it did offer some respite against the now-blinding rain. These seasonal showers could be awfully strong. Naegi didn’t even look too bothered; he was just laughing, brushing water away from his eyes as they kept walking. He smiled at her, every now and then, and she was grateful for the tumult since it was likely hiding her blush.

It’d be impractical to talk right now but that didn’t mean Mukuro wasn’t watching him closely. Naegi somehow managed to look even smaller than usual, like a puppy with its fur sodden, the absence of his jacket only adding to that feeling.

They were just about one single street away from the apartment she shared with her sister when, as fast as it had arrived, the rain lessened. It let up with no warning whatsoever, reducing to a workable drizzle, and Mukuro handed Naegi his jacket back.

“…Thank you,” she said, the words sounding almost foreign in her throat. She didn’t often say them simply because rarely did she ever have to.

Ignoring how absolutely drenched the garment was, Naegi pulled it back on. “You don’t have to thank me for that!”

He was brushing dripping chestnut strands from his eyes when Mukuro commented, “Your luck wasn’t too favorable today, was it, Naegi-kun?”

She had meant it in a humorous way, but he merely met her gaze and smiled again. “I think it was, Ikusaba-san.”

Mukuro had to consciously keep her eyes from widening with surprise at that, pivoting her head away once more. She had only found her voice once she had walked up the first couple of steps that would let her into the apartment complex. Turning to face him—he had stopped at the bottom stair—she offered a curt nod.

“I’ll…see you later, Naegi-kun. I appreciated your company today. We’ll talk about the fitness plan tomorrow.”

He beamed up at her. “Of course! I’m really glad I ran into you. M-Maybe we could, um…” She watched his fingers drum along the strap of his satchel, wondering if he was going to get the courage to say what she was suspecting.

(He did, and her heart just about exploded.)

“I’d be happy to walk you home again sometime, Ikusaba-san.”

Mukuro pretended she wasn’t going to answer, allowing her eyes to track across the breadth of the road. A car passed by and disturbed a puddle, causing droplets to fly into the air. “I wouldn’t mind,” she said at last, despite knowing how dangerous it was for anyone to associate with her for long.

_Maybe…Maybe Junko won’t mind either…_

Naegi let out a sigh of relief and waved. “Until tomorrow, then!” He had only turned around about halfway when she spoke again.

“Naegi-kun.”

He looked back at her, curious.

Mukuro pointed over his shoulder, at the horizon, and sunlight could be seen breaking through the clouds. Streams of gold lit up the drains and made diamonds out of spiraling rivulets running off of the nearby roofs.

“It looks like it’s clearing up.”

“It really does! Well, that’s good luck, right?” Naegi grinned again, arms folded behind his head, and she marveled at how freely he gave away his smiles, that joy and optimism he wore on his sleeve and let anyone take a part of. She just hoped he didn’t run out.

Mukuro allowed herself the brief luxury of watching him walk away, swinging his bag, and she swore he had a spring in his step. The rays of the sun were turning red-orange as it began to set, but it still painted him brightly, warmly, the kindest person she had ever known.

…And then he glanced over his shoulder at her, and they both jolted with embarrassment.

She dashed inside and relaxed again only once she felt the firm wood of her apartment door at her back, listening to the click of the lock. Resting against it, she pressed a hand to her chest and finally allowed a delighted smile to form along her face.

They…had made  _plans_ for tomorrow. And of all the people he could have asked, he had come to  _her_  for help! H-He might…might even walk her home again…

Mukuro laid a hand across her cheek and she knew without a doubt that it was burning, that her  _entire face_ was burning, matching the heat rising within her chest. This warmth…it wasn’t Despair, it was nothing like it…! She couldn’t even find the name for this feeling that was so rare for the soldier that her mind failed to acquaint it with a word.

“Something on your mind,  _Muku-chan_?”

Mukuro was suddenly standing ramrod straight, trying to clear all emotion off of her face, but knowing she had already been caught, had already _failed_ —

Junko’s face was thrust into hers, and those cruel blue eyes were piercing her, glaring, bearing down like icicles into flesh. She felt herself going numb like usual, shoulders stiff, listening to her sister ramble.

“Did you have  _fun_  with him, Muku-chan?” She continued in that same sickly sweet voice, smiling in a way that held no kindness, no joy at all. “Did he make your little heart  _flutter_? Are you going to be spending _time_  with him?”

She didn’t answer, dropping her school satchel and letting it hit the ground at her side.

“Give me a  _fucking break_! I  _called_  you, sis! How did you  _not_  notice?”

Mukuro realized from the tense, stretching silence that her sister wanted an answer, so she tried to give one. “I…I might not have heard it because of the rain. Or…Or maybe…the signal was cut off due to—“

“ _Check your phone_!” Junko screeched, cutting her off, red-painted nails digging into Mukuro’s left arm. Their faces were so close that she could see the blood vessels bulging in her eyes.

She checked it, and her heart dropped like a rock into her stomach. That call had been…about seventeen minutes ago…

What had she been doing then? Walking and talking with Naegi in that store, right? Maybe not? Her measurements were thrown off. She…She had no idea…With him she always forgot, never had to recall every tiny detail, didn’t have to pay—

Junko grabbed Mukuro’s chin and forced her gaze to lift, forced their eyes to meet, forced her chin to move from side to side in a mocking semblance of a disagreeing shake as she spoke in a low murmur. “Do you  _really_  think he’d care for someone like you? You’re worthless, sis. The only thing you’re good at is  _killing_ —and you don’t have a clue who to even _target_  without directions. Do you  _really_  believe dear Naegi-kun wouldn’t be frightened by that? He doesn’t know you like I do. Doesn’t know that you’re as heartless as they come. How many men have you watched die by now? How many more are you going to slaughter yourself?”

She chuckled, amused, nails drawing blood. Mukuro winced, but didn’t fight her. She could never fight her. Not her darling little sister, no. She already knew all of this but it sounded so much  _worse_ , coming from her.

“You’re pathetic.”

Junko pressed a kiss to her forehead—Mukuro closed her eyes—before stepping away and flouncing off with an airy chuckle. So cold, she thought. So very cold. How did an individual like her even  _exist_?

“Don’t forget to do my homework, Muku-chan!” Junko called from another room, and the soldier just swallowed hard, nodding an agreement she couldn’t see.

_Of course. Of course._

But still.she gave herself just a few moments more—recalling that gentle smile gifted to her against the backdrop of the storm. So kind. So caring.

Maybe she could smile like that for him, someday. Wake up to that smile. Give him the same kind of warmth he gave her. Make his heart flutter helplessly, too.

_If only…_

Mukuro sighed.

**Author's Note:**

> A gift for my illustrious friend, the almighty Kali! (Kasumikamigawa of Tumblr she's ppp cool check that chick out) I took her prompt and did my best to fulfill it!


End file.
